Italian Regulator Probes Watch Giants Over Suspected Price-Fixing

Key Takeaways

• Italian Antitrust Probes: The Italian Competition Authority has launched parallel investigations into Citizen and Swatch over alleged resale price-fixing with their authorized jewelers and watch retailers.
• Suspected Resale Price Maintenance: Both groups are accused of imposing fixed online retail prices on their selective distribution networks and monitoring compliance across distributors.
• Retaliatory Measures Alleged: Citizen and Swatch are suspected of adopting commercial retaliation against retailers that offered discounts or deviated from imposed price levels.

Deep Dive

Italy’s competition watchdog is turning up the pressure on two of the biggest names in global watchmaking. Citizen and Swatch now find themselves at the center of a high-stakes antitrust probe into whether they’ve been quietly calling the shots on retail pricing and punishing stores that don’t play along.

The Italian Competition Authority has opened parallel investigations into Citizen Watch, as well as Swatch. Officials believe both companies may have coordinated a resale price-fixing scheme across their selective distribution networks in Italy, particularly affecting online listings by authorized jewelers and watch retailers.

If confirmed, the practice would strike at the heart of EU competition law. The Authority is probing a possible violation of Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the foundational rule prohibiting anticompetitive agreements. Regulators also warned that the conduct could amount to a “hardcore restriction” under Article 4(a) of Commission Regulation (EU) No. 720/2022, the kind of infringement where leniency is rarely extended.

Citizen is suspected of more than just suggesting price levels. Investigators say the group may have closely monitored retailers’ online prices and deployed retaliatory commercial measures against those offering discounts.

Swatch is accused of enforcing a similar playbook of imposing the price, track compliance, and squeeze those who don’t fall in line.

The alleged tactics matter far beyond luxury storefronts. Retail resale markets rely on genuine price competition, especially online, and EU regulators have consistently treated resale price maintenance as a serious threat to consumer welfare.

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